Chess / Bridge Shop Hours:
Monday-Saturday,
10am to 6pm
Sundays
11am to 5pm

May 2010 Book Reviews

Chessmaster Grandmaster Edition In stock £29.95

Catalogue 2010 [download PDF]

WWW BCM Chess for Beginners!
NEW PRODUCTS
BCM April 2010 £4.05 plus P&P	BCM May 2010 £4.05 plus P&P
The Killer Dutch (DVD) by Simon Williams £19.99 plus P&P	Chess Duels with the Champions by Yasser Seirawan £20.00 plus P&P
BCM February 2010 £4.05 plus P&P	BCM March 2010 £4.05 plus P&P
Fritz 12 £40.00 plus P&P	Power of Exchange (PC-DVD) by Adrian Mikhalchishin £26.95 plus P&P
Big Database 2010 (PC-DVD) £44.95 plus P&P	Mega Database 2010 (PC-DVD) £129.95 plus P&P
Mega Database 2010 (PC-DVD) Upgrade from Older versions £89.95 plus P&P	Mega Database 2010 (PC-DVD) Upgrade from Mega 2009 £44.95 plus P&P
British Chess Magazine April 2010 ... what's in the this issue ... click here for details read the April reviews	British Chess Magazine May 2010 ... what's in this issue ... click here for details read the May reviews

CHESS NEWS
News Archive: 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009

BCM Contact Details [31/07/10]

Please note that as of 1 August 2010, Steve Giddins takes over from John Saunders as editor of British Chess Magazine. Thus all enquiries relating to the magazine should be forwarded to Steve from that date. For the time being, technical enquiries purely related to what appears on this website may still be sent to John Saunders. All contact information for BCM can be found here. Please note that John Saunders' Chess Blog may now be found here - http://johnchess.blogspot.com/

British Championship, Canterbury, 25 Jul - 7 Aug [27/07/10]

The 97th British Chess Championship is being held at the University of Kent at Canterbury and runs from 25 July to 7 August. England number one Michael Adams heads the list of contenders for first prize. Links: official website • live webcam • live games.

BCM: Change of Editor [23/06/10]

After eleven years as Editor of the British Chess Magazine, John Saunders will be leaving his position with effect from the end of July 2010. The Directors of the company wish to thank John for his outstanding contribution to the magazine over the period, and to wish him all the best for the future. At the same time, we are delighted to announce that John’s successor as Editor will be FM Steve Giddins. Steve needs little introduction to BCM readers or the British chess community in general, having been a regular contributor to the BCM in the past... [read more]

British Chess Into the Nineties [30/03/10]

... but we are already into the 2010s, you ask? Well, yes, but it is interesting to look back at this particular article by Glenn Flear which was published in BCM in March 1990. In it, he advocates the formation of a British National League, based on the French league model, with some of his own suggestions and modifications. Three years later, Glenn's dream came true - the 4NCL started in October 1993, with many of the features which the perspicacious English grandmaster had formulated some three years earlier. Perhaps his part in formulating the 4NCL should be more widely recognised. Well worth a read... click here to read it.

R.I.P. Vasily Smyslov (1921-2010) [27/03/10]

The 7th world chess champion, Vasily Vasilievich Smyslov, died this morning. Reports suggest he died of a heart attack. His dates were 24.3.1921 to 26.3.2010 (he died on the night of Friday/Saturday 26/27 March - subsequent reports indicate that he died around midnight). We will publish a full obituary in the May issue of BCM. Other links: http://e3e5.com/ (the news was first published here) • Wikipedia • Guardian obituary (by Leonard Barden) • ChessBase obituary.

128th Varsity Match, Oxford vs Cambridge, 6 March [06/03/10]

The 128th Varsity match between Oxford and Cambridge Universities was played on 6 March 2010 at the RAC Club in London's Pall Mall. The match was drawn 4-4. Click here for more information.

BCM, January 2010 - London Chess Classic Souvenir Issue [18/01/10]

It came out a little later than normal - apologies to subscribers - but we were eager to include a full report of the London Chess Classic won by Magnus Carlsen. There are no fewer than 40 pages on this elite event, including many colour photos. It was quite simply the finest tournament played in London for a quarter of a century. Order your souvenir copy now!

The Gambit Chess Rooms (1898-1958) [10/02/02]

A little bit of chess history: the Gambit Chess Rooms, in Budge Row, were one of London's favourite chess haunts. They closed just over fifty years ago. Here is an article from the March 1958 issue of British Chess Magazine by John Roycroft, giving a flavour of their atmosphere, to go with some recent footage released by British Pathe, showing the Gambit Chess Rooms in 1946.

Hastings Congress, 28 Dec 2009 - 5 Jan 2010 [06/01/10]

The 85th Hastings International Chess Congress takes place from 28 December 2009 to 5 January 2010 at the Horntye Park Sports Complex in Hastings. Once again the event is being generously sponsored by Hastings Borough Council, with additional local support. GM David Howell, who did so well at the London Chess Classic, is amongst the line-up in the Hastings Masters Tournament, which is a nine-round Swiss system event running from 28 December to 5 January ... click here for further details • Official Website: www.hastingschess.org.uk • Latest: The joint winners were Andrei Istratescu (ROU), Mark Hebden (ENG), David Howell (ENG) and Romain Edouard (FRA) on 7/9. England's Jonathan Hawkins secured his final IM norm and probably enough rating points to get the title • BCMChess Blog. Games: View/Download Games from the 2009/10 Hastings Masters (via BritBase.co.uk - complete games)

2010 Gibtelecom Festival [31/12/09]

The 8th Gibtelecom Chess Festival runs from Tuesday 26 January 2010 to Thursday 4 February 2010 at the Caleta Hotel in Gibraltar. The Gibtelecom Masters line-up grows ever stronger. After application of the January 2010 ratings, the top players are:  Etienne Bacrot (FRA 2713g), closely followed by Sergei Movsesian(SVK 2708g) and Francisco Vallejo Pons (ESP 2705g). Other star names are Michael Adams (ENG 2694g) and Gata Kamsky (USA 2693g). The women's field has suddenly become stronger than ever. As well as world number two woman player Humpy Koneru (IND 2614g), we hope to have (fingers crossed, if her visa application is on time) the world number three - Hou Yifan (CHN 2590g - see photo above) - and the current Women's World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk (RUS 2523g). Alexandra isn't the only world champion - we have the sensational brother and sister duo from Peru, Jorge and Deysi Cori Tello - Jorge is the world under-14 champion and on the brink of becoming a GM aged 14 - and Deysi is the world girls under-16 champion. There are now comprehensive lists of all players entered in the tournament on the official website - http://www.gibraltarchesscongress.com. Also see the BCMChess Blog.

London Chess Classic, 8-15 Dec [02/12/09]

Malcolm Pein reports: The London Chess Classic takes place from 8-15 December 2009 at the Olympia Conference Centre. It will be the highest level tournament in London for 25 years and will be the first in a series of events designed to increase enthusiasm for chess in the UK and promote the game and its undoubted educational benefits in schools and communities. England's four leading grandmasters; Michael Adams, Nigel Short, Luke McShane and David Howell will be pitched against a world-class field that comprises: former world champion Vladimir Kramnik; 18-year-old Magnus Carlsen, ranked world number two, now coached by Garry Kasparov and widely seen as a future holder of the world crown; one of China's finest players, Ni Hua; and the US Champion Hikaru Nakamura. Adult tickets are £10 per day or £50 for all seven rounds. Official website: http://www.londonchessclassic.com/ • Latest (24/11/09): Open tournament entries include HAMMER, Jon Ludvig, 2588g (NOR); CONQUEST, Stuart C, 2563g (ENG); WILLIAMS, Simon K, 2550g (ENG); HEBDEN, Mark L, 2522g (ENG); WELLS, Peter K, 2489g (ENG); SUMMERSCALE, Aaron P, 2449g (ENG); MCDONALD, Neil, 2412g (ENG); Viktor Korchnoi will be the guest of honour at the tournament. Click here for further details - and apply to play Korchnoi in a simultaneous display. Plus full details of the FIDE Open tournament and other subsidiary events to be held alongside.

Obituary: Richard O'Brien (1944-2009) [02/12/09]

Some very sad news: well-known chess arbiter, organiser and publisher Richard O'Brien has died, aged 65. His friend and club-mate FM Andrew Smith has written an obituary - click here to read.

London Chess Classic Women's Invitational [08/11/09]

Lawrence Cooper reports: I have at least one spare place in the London Chess Classic Women's Invitational which takes place from 8-15 December at the London Olympia Conference Centre in Kensington. It is a ten-player, nine-round all-play-all and WIM norms will be available. Please apply to Lawrence Cooper for further details. Entry fee is £100 and includes access to the The Classic which includes world number two Magnus Carlsen, former world champion Vladimir Kramnik as well as England's top four players.

GREAT NEW DEALS ON BCM SUBSCRIPTIONS: If you have never subscribed to BCM before, or are aged 18 or younger on 1 January 2010, you can get a 12 month subscription to the magazine for only £26 (that's no less than £16 off the standard price). Click here for details.

News Archive: 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009

British Tournament Calendar
Comprehensive details of all forthcoming British tournaments -
the most up-to-date listing available on the web

Organisers: please send details of forthcoming events
plus news, results and games via email

Best and most comprehensive source of British tournament games available for free download in zipped PGN format, many not available anywhere else.
http://www.saund.co.uk/britbase